Russia lists Pussy Riot member, art collector and satirist as “foreign agent”

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia on Thursday named a member of the punk band Pussy Riot a prominent art collector and well-known satirist as a “foreign agent”, the latest in a series of moves designed to stifle dissent by critics.

Ending a year-long crackdown on Kremlin critics unseen since the Soviet era, Russian authorities have this week ordered the closure of Memorial International, the country’s oldest human rights group.

Alexei Navalny, the Kremlin’s top critic, was also jailed in 2021 and banned from moving. Many of his allies were forced to flee.

The government says it is complying with the law to frustrate the extremist and protect the country from what it says are foreign influence.

On Thursday, the Russian Justice Ministry added Nadezhda Tolokonnikova of Pussy Riot, art collector Marat Gelman, Kremlin satirist and critic Viktor Shenderovich, and five other “foreign agents” to the list by 17 to 111 names by the end of 2020.

The term “foreign agent” has negative connotations in Soviet times and the ones listed meet strict financial reporting requirements. In addition, everything they publish forces them to preface with a denial that they are foreign agents.

Shenderovich is one of Russia’s leading satirists, best known for his 1990s puppet show of political caricature on television.

Tolokonnikova helped launch Pussy Riot, which became known for some provocative performances for protesting against the leaders of the Russian Orthodox Church.

He is also one of the founders of the independent news media outlet Mediazona, which was named a “foreign agent” in late September.

On Thursday, the media reported that the Ministry of Justice had listed other “foreign agents” and received money from Google (NASDAQ 🙂 ads.

The media has complained that the cancellation of “foreign agents” is detrimental to their products and greatly reduces advertising revenue.

Several Russian-labeled media outlets chose to shut down because it was almost impossible to find sponsors and advertisers.

The Kremlin rejects the idea that the media is being persecuted and says that legislation is necessary to protect Russia from foreign interference and that journalists and NGOs can be manipulated.